A new opportunity lands in your inbox. The company is interesting. The work is broader. The compensation is attractive. Then you see the title. It is the same as yours. Or perhaps it even sounds like a step backward. Before you decline the conversation, look deeper.
In-house titles vary enormously from company to company. A Senior Counsel at one organization may have more responsibility than an Assistant General Counsel somewhere else. A Vice President title may carry significant authority at one company and function largely as a compensation level at another.
That means title alone is a poor way to measure whether a career move is actually a step forward.
Consider the substance of the opportunity. Will you have greater access to senior leadership? Manage people for the first time? Gain board exposure? Take ownership of a business unit or new area of law? Move from being one lawyer among dozens to a visible leader on a smaller team? Gain international responsibility, equity participation, or a clearer path to the General Counsel role?
Those changes can matter far more to your long-term career than what appears next to your name on LinkedIn.
The reverse is also true. A more impressive title does not automatically make an opportunity better. If the scope is narrower, the business is less compelling, or the role offers little opportunity to grow, the title may be doing most of the selling.
None of this means titles are irrelevant. They can affect compensation, internal authority, and how future employers interpret your experience. If a title seems materially below the scope of the role, it is reasonable to ask why and whether there is flexibility.
But do not let the label end the conversation before you understand the job. The better question is not, “Does this title look like a promotion?” It is, “Will this opportunity make me a stronger candidate for where I want to be next?”
Sometimes the opportunity that looks lateral on paper is the one that moves your career forward the most.
